2018 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Facelift: In Pictures

Update: Mercedes-Benz India has begun testing the C-Class facelift in India, before its eventual launch in October 2018. The lightly camouflaged test car was spied in Pune.

The current generation of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class has been around for four years now, can you believe it? Exterior design and classy interior design borrowed from the S-Class made it stand out along with an all-new platform which made it better dynamically.

The current generation of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class has been around for four years now, can you believe it? Exterior design and classy interior design borrowed from the S-Class made it stand out along with an all-new platform which made it better dynamically.

The C-Class was powered by engines from a generation before (W204) and though it has aged gracefully over four years - a facelift will certainly help it stand out again.

The mid-life facelift aims to fix the ‘problems’ with the C-Class, it gets new engines and new styling. Good news? The Mercedes-Benz C-Class facelift is coming to India in October 2018.

Design

You will find that the C-Class looks the same overall, why fix it if ain’t broke? There are noticeable elements which have been redesigned though, like the tweaks to the bumpers.

The AMG versions of the new C-Class have been given a more thorough revision.

There are three new colours on offer internationally - Mojave Silver, Emerald Green and Matte Grey.

The sweet-looking Matte Grey is limited to the coupe and cabriolet variants only.

The C-Class can now be also had with MultiBeam LED headlamps for the first time. With the optional UltraRange option, these can light up the road to 650-metres ahead.

Base variants of the car may continue to be offered with halogen lamps and LED DRLs, though it remains to be seen if that will be the case in India

Diesel Engines

There are two new BS VI compliant diesel engines from the OM654 four-cylinder family. The more powerful version will go on sale first. Both engines are offered with 9-speed gearboxes that send power to the rear wheels only.

The base diesel, the C 220 d, is now powered by the 1951cc engine that already does duty in the E-Class. Despite being smaller it makes more power - 194PS vs 170PS.

The 245PS of the new C 300 d is 41PS more than the C 250 d. It continues to offer the same 500Nm of torque, but over a wider rev range. The C 300 d calm nature makes it very enjoyable at slow speeds, but it packs plenty of punch for quick moves too.

Petrol Engines

New four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine family includes India-bound 1.5- litre and 2-litre units.

The 1.5-litre engine will be badged as the C 200. It delivers 184PS of power, same as the outgoing C 200. To improve drivability and efficiency while reducing emissions, the 1.5-litre engine also gets a mild-hybrid tech that can give a 160Nm and 14PS performance boost to negate turbo-lag or just speed things up. It can also recuperate energy when slowing down.

The C 200 felt at home on the highway but even better for low speed commuting. It felt eager, smooth and quiet too. It is a lot punchier than you would expect a 1.5-litre engine to be on the highway, the turbo-lag has been almost eliminated

The C 300 gets the new 2-litre turbo-petrol which makes a solid 258PS of power and has a claimed 0-100kph time of 5.9 seconds. C 300 is also a punchy petrol, ideal for people looking to cover large distances or those who are perpetually in a hurry. The engine is a bit louder than expected but redeems itself with a sporty note when in Sport+ mode. The 9-speed gearbox feels a bit irksome on the C 300, as it doesn’t shift up as quickly or smoothly as expected.

Interiors & Features

Wood trim lovers will like the two new colours for the open-pore (not-lacquer) wood trims in the new C-Class, available in brown or black colours.

The new steering wheel gets touch-sensitive controls from the S-Class.

An optional 10.25-inch central infotainment screen and 12.3-inch digital display for driver’s instrument cluster make the C-Class’ interior feel even more special.

S-Class derived Distronic Active Distance Control, and Active Steering Assist gives new C-Class semi-autonomous driving capabilities.

What, When?

The 2018 C-Class facelift will be launched in India in October 2018, the C 300 d and C 200 (first hybrid in the segment) are expected to be launched at first. Prices should increase by Rs 1- 2 lakh. Currently, the non-AMG C-Class sedan variants are priced from Rs 39.9 lakh to Rs 46.87 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi.

You can read our first impressions of the 2018 Mercedes-Benz C-Class facelift here.